2022 SEC Tournament Game Preview: Vanderbilt vs Georgia
When: Wednesday, March 9 at 8:00 pm ET on SEC Network
Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL
The second of two first round matchups in the 2022 SEC Tournament, Vanderbilt takes on Georgia for the chance to play six-seed Alabama in the second round on Thursday.
Despite having lost three of their last four games, Vanderbilt enters the 2022 SEC Tournament coming off a 63-61 win at Ole Miss in the regular season finale, with all three of those previously mentioned losses close games. Claiming the lead late in that matchup in Oxford, the Commodores did shoot a combined 42.3% from the field, as well as receiving a few strong games from the likes of Pippen, Wright, and Robbins.
Finishing the regular season with a 7-11 record in SEC play (15-15 overall), the Commodores enter the week as the No. 11 seed in the 2022 SEC Tournament. While the Commodores rank among the lowest in the SEC offensively at only 69.5 PPG, Vanderbilt however allows only 67.5 PPG to opponents, but did struggle at times defensively in the previous meeting between these two, a game in which the Commodores won 85-77.
Led by the SEC’s leading scorer in the previously mentioned Scotty Pippen Jr (20.5 PPG), the backcourt is arguably the strength for the Commodores, a group that also features key role players in Trey Thomas and Tyrin Lawrence. Jordan Wright and Myles Stute are two impactful wings for the Commodores, while the paint is controlled by Liam Robbins and Quentin Millora-Brown.
Georgia on the other hand struggled mightily throughout the 2021-22 season, and enter the 2022 SEC Tournament having lost their last 11-straight. Dropping their regular season finale 79-69 at Missouri, the Bulldogs actually led for a majority of that contest, but surrendered the lead mid-way through the second half, as well as being out-rebounded 43-24.
The No. 14 seed in the 2022 SEC Tournament, Georgia is coming off a 1-17 season in SEC play, as well as going 6-25 overall. The Bulldogs rank just ahead of the Commodores in scoring at 70.4 PPG in the SEC, but have struggled mightily in particular on the defensive end where Georgia is allowing an average of 78.3 PPG.
Similar to the Commodores previously, the guards are arguably the strength of this Georgia team, a group that features leading-scorer Kario Oquendo, Aaron Cook, Christian Wright, and Jaxon Etter. Braelen Bridges is the Bulldogs primary inside presence, while Noah Baumann and Jabri Abdur-Rahim are the two primary options on the wing.
These two teams have already played twice so far this season, with both wins going to Vanderbilt back in January. While the Bulldogs are capable of pulling off the win here, it’s hard to pick against Vanderbilt due to winning both games previously.
Prediction: Vanderbilt 73, Georgia 68